Google no longer mining student Gmail accounts for targeted ads

Google will no longer scan student and teacher Gmail messages or use data from Education apps for use in advertising following a legal firestorm that the policy violated privacy rights.

The policy shift was first announced by Bram Bout, director of
Google for Education, in a blog post on Wednesday. According to Bout,
Google has removed a toggle to enable and disable ads in the Apps
for Education Administrator console. He noted that without the
toggle, ads in the Apps for Education suite are now automatically
turned off, and administrators will not be able to turn them back
on.

The Mountain View, California-based tech giant company had been
automatically blocking the ads unless administrators changed the
controls.

Bout also noted that similar changes are being made “for all
our Google Apps customers, including Business, Government and for
legacy users of the free version, and we’ll provide an update
when the rollout is complete.”

On Thursday, at 16:00 GMT, Bout will co-host a Google hangout to discuss the changes and
answer questions.
Apps for Education is used by primary and secondary schools
worldwide, delivering free online applications including Gmail,
Docs, and Spreadsheet, among others. Around 30 million students,
teachers and administrators use the service today, according to
Google.

While none of those 30 million users were actually shown ads as a
result of the service key word scans, their personal information
was still collected by Google so that it could be employed for
targeted marketing elsewhere online.

Although Apps for Education users are now free from such
intrusive forms of marketing, everyday Gmail users will still see
their emails scanned by an automated system for the sake of ads,
customization and security.

Under its recently revamped terms of service, Google state that
"our automated systems analyze your content (including
emails) to provide you personally relevant product features, such
as customized search results, tailored advertising, and spam and
malware detection. This analysis occurs as the content is sent,
received, and when it is stored.”

Students and other Gmail users sued Google last year in
California, claiming the email scanning violated federal and
state wiretap laws. According to the Wall Street Journal, that
case spurred Google’s policy change.

During the litigation, Google admitted to scanning emails sent
and received by students who attended schools using Apps for
Education. Week magazine reported that such practices may violate
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a law which
protects educational records.

The nine plaintiffs had hoped to file a “class action” suit to
gain financial compensation for Gmail users, as well as to force
the company to be more open about its policies. In March,
however, US District Judge Lucy Koh rejected the move, which
would have allowed the plaintiffs to pool their resources,
exposed Google to billions of dollars of potential damages, and
given them greater leverage to push for a settlement.

Instead, email users might have to file suit individually or in
small groups, lowering claims and increasing the financial burden
of pursuing legal action.